Master Thief is the ***specific*** card. There are some cards that can break the game by themselves, but they are not "must play" cards; very often there are options not to take them. I played 1500+ games and if you have already 1 thief you ***always*** take Master Thief if you can! The core of the game that every card is situational and you think twice whether take it. In case of Master Thief no need to think, if you/opponent can take it you are lucky / your opponent 's lucky! It's pure luck and no choice, it's not the idea of that game!

This post reads like you're drunk.

True - if you have 1 underworld you should probably pick Master Thief. ...If you have 1 horse you should probably pick Huntress? ...If you have 1 ranged you should probably pick Trebuchets? Those are all pretty easy picks based on luck; do you have a problem with the other two or just Master Thief? I've purposely skipped Master Thief combo a few times (extremely rare though), if opponent has a lot of ruin/waste and they can't use it themselves. But I agree with you it's nearly always the best pick. @downbeat - english is not always a poster's first language maybe?

You probably won't pick Trebuchets if you have no discounts for it (and your opponent has). You pick Master Thief every time you/opponent has 1 underworld already, even if it's takes all your money. I dont take rare situations when you and your opponent both missed underworlds before 3 round. @downbeatdean: i guess you're sober playing this game ?

There are a few cases you shouldn't pick Master Thief though. 1) If your opponent has the Princess, the swapped card will give him +4 culture points, so you should consider how worth that swap is. 1b) Same with Shinobi, where the swapped card is at -2 instead of -4. 2) If your opponent can possibly knock out the thief itself or the only other thief you have on board before the swap is done (city guard, imperial guard, onagers, valkyries, or sometimes other knockout effects). (I did pick it once though knowing I could surefire the swap in the 4th round, paying the -4 penalty in the 3rd round but that case was unique.) 3) If your opponent has Master Thief the same turn. It happend to me once. Both player choose Master Thief. Luckily the swapped cards were not thieves but that's where the rules and the game go really random (unpredicatbility) 4) If another OP thief card can be chosen. It is sometimes better to pick Graverobber or Lord of Decay. I usually don't do it but some opponents have beaten me. True, I got a slight advantage picking the thief but I got beaten hard on the 4th round. 5) If the swapped card will trigger unwanted effects because your opponent had no thief card yet : Marauders block a mine, Macabre thing steals all your culture, the temple ressurects a ruined card, etc... 6) So far I have assumed you are doing well financially. But, especially, if you pay the full price + 4 taxes. Sometimes keeping your gold at the expense of culture is a better option. Being broke in the 3rd round can and will happen often when you face smart and/or lucky opponents. There may be other cases I have not yet encountered but sometimes you should avoid picking the master thief. Edit: the game would not be fun without a bit of RNG though. Everyone would play the same. Having multiple play styles and close matches make the game fun in itself. It can be infuriating if you lose really closely ten times in a row but at the end of the day, removing the tiny bit of luck of games like this one or the Risk game would be detrimental to the fun core of the game.

ISSSSS, only the first case with Princess of Thieves is worth missing Master Thief. In all other cases, please, leave me Master Thief and i will be happy to change it for your most valuable card (Murphy's law). Master Thief is dangerous not because of -4 to culture, but because of taking a card from your opponent. Only the second cheating card "Graverobber Baron" can compare with it.

Marauders, Danse Macabre (why your opponent took it if he had no thieves?), Lord of Decay, Shinobi - they all can't affect the situation seriously.

> *Originally posted by **[asterix001](/forums/1058304/topics/1905755?page=1#13385418)**:* > ISSSSS, only the first case with Princess of Thieves is worth missing Master Thief. > In all other cases, please, leave me Master Thief and i will be happy to change it for your most valuable card (Murphy's law). > > Master Thief is dangerous not because of -4 to culture, but because of taking a card from your opponent. > Only the second cheating card "Graverobber Baron" can compare with it. I would probably still take Master Thief in first case. Because otherwise opponent would take it instead (since they have Princess of Thieves) and promptly steal my "most valuable" card. I would give up 4 culture to avoid that risk!

I can understand the other cases are very situational. I did not say it applied as a general rule but you still should reconsider. As a rule of thumb, the further you progress in the game, the better understanding you get with the game as a whole. So, for example, if you had to pick (or not) Master thief as your 3rd round 8th card, the choice would probably be clear as you know every card for the 3rd and 4th round, as well as the effects order for the remaining phases of the 3rd round.

ISSSSS: ...so Master Thief could have some constraints, such as only 1st - 4th slots in the 3rd round and only when no one have thieves )

You need more watchtowers. I usually run about eight.

> *Originally posted by **[techung2002](/forums/1058304/topics/1905755?page=1#13406258)**:* > You need more watchtowers. I usually run about eight. LOL this comment! Sentinals are also a good thief stopper. Or get the princess and have the den of thieves become a culture boost. The key question, wjen trying to find game-breaking/unbalanced cards is 'Are there enough counters?' I think the answer here is a solid yes. Imperial and city guards also deserve a mention in this context. Don't let the Underworld get you down. It is neither strong with offense nor culture. Take away the thieving and there's nothing left. When you see Grimmer... take spy defense!

Master Thief can hurt, but I've lost plenty of times even when I used it. It might swipe the most valuable card, but also swipe a Ruin or something worthless. So it can sometimes function as little more than an expensive, 4 point (4 point difference) card that can't be knocked out.